Note: The petition was originated and is managed by a longtime friend of mine, Dr. Amit Schejter of Pennsylvania State University. The original postings of the following highlights, representing over 1000 endorsements from over 20 countries throughout the world, appear in the “Signatures” section of the online petition.

The Global Anti-Hate Petition Comments

“An attack on Yahya is an attack on all of us.”
–Michael X. Delli Carpini; Dean; Annenberg School for Communication; University of Pennsylvania

“I had the privilege of being the Chancellor of Purdue University Calumet for eleven years and the Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs for three years. I have known Professor Kamalipour since 1987 and have always held him in highest regard. There has never been a reason to question his integrity or his motives. It is with sincere regret that he should be the subject of a slanderous attack.”
–Dr. James Yackel

“I have known Professor Yahya Kamalipour for over 12 years. I have worked closely with him and participated in conferences that he has organized. I know him to be an inclusive humanitarian with core values of peace, tolerance, justice and global harmony. Attacks on him by Maurice Eisenstein are scurrilous and baseless. That Professor Kamalipour must endure these false charges and constant harassment is completely outrageous and antithetical to the civil society he is working so hard to achieve. He deserves the support of all of us who believe in civil discourse.”
–Howard Cohen, Interim President, SUNY Buffalo State

“I have had the distinct pleasure of knowing Yahya Kamalipour for over 30 years and the honor of working directly with him for 15 of those years. I take great pride (in my role as Chair of the Department of Communication and Creative Arts at Purdue University Calumet) of having been directly involved in the appointment of Yahya as a department colleague. As Chair of the department and later as Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at PUC, I took great pleasure in watching Yahya continue to flourish as a teacher, scholar and superb citizen of the academic community and the discipline. After accepting a position at Morehead State University (Kentucky) in 1997 as Provost and Professor of Communication, I continued to follow Yahya’s career and take great pride in his accomplishments. Throughout the years, Yahya has continued to demonstrate the highest level of personal and professional integrity. The claims made against him by Eisenstein are unbelievably outrageous and not credible (forgive my redundancy). They are outrageous to anyone who has any direct personal (have met him) or professional (have read his work) knowledge of Yahya. They are not credible to anyone who reads Eisenstein’s blog with any degree of intellectual honesty – that is sufficient honesty to note that no direct substantiation of any of the claims is provided. Mr. Eisenstein should be ashamed of himself for demonstrating such a low degree of personal, academic and intellectual integrity.”
–Dr. Michael R. Moore

“It is hard to imagine that Eisenstein was taught in the United States. If he was, he certainly didn’t pay attention during his instruction on academic honesty. Purdue should be mightily embarrassed by his presence on their campus.”
– Dr. Alan Richardson

“The only character that has been disgraced here is that of the accuser for a baseless and juvenile case he has presented. Even a school yard bully would have difficulty with making this argument stick. I am disappointed at Purdue University for allowing such racism and hatred to be openly discussed under the freedom of speech cloak.”
–Barzin Mobasher

“Eisenstein’s diatribe is full of misspellings, grammatical errors, vacuous statements and non-sequiturs. This guy is a college professor?!”
–Dr. Kevin Barrett

“Is the author of this drivel really a professor at Purdue, and of in all things, political science?”
–Arnold de Beer

“Professor Yahya Kamalipour has always been my inspiration and my best teacher. Not only has he supported me in my academic work when I studied at Purdue University Calumet, but he also helped my later career as a political activist with his valuable advice. Currently, I am a researcher an instructor in the National Research University Higher School of Economics in Moscow focusing on human rights and social movements; and I know for sure that I would not be in the place I am if it was not for Dr.Kamalipour. Hateful accusations against him derive from a mere civic illiteracy and not understanding what an ambassador of peace means. Unfortunately, as often happens in our history, hate is aimed at the best of our kind. I urge you to restore a positive reputation of my dear friend Professor Kamalipour.”
–Alexandra Endaltseva, Instructor, researcher-analyst; National Research University Higher School of Economics

“I had the distinct displeasure of working with Maurice Eisenstein (the Purdue Calumet prof in question) for several years. He’s a far-right Israeli who specializes in attacking people he deems insufficiently anti-Muslim for not being true American patriots (remarkably, he seems not to have noticed any ironies in this position). I remember hearing from many students who had endured his classes; the sense I gained was that he’s one of those profs who blames his students for his own manifest teaching inadequacies. But this attack goes over and beyond questions of academic ineptitude; he’s crossed a line and should be censured for it.”
– John Abbott

“I AM WRITING TO SUPPORT DR. YAHYA KAMALIPOUR IN HIS EFFORT TO CLEAR HIS REPUTATION AND NAME FROM THE VICIOUS AND WHAT I BELIEVE TO BE UNJUSTIFIED ATTACK ON HIS REPUTATION. A TRULY DISTINGUISHED COLLEAGUE WHO HAS CONTRIBUTED MUCH TO HIS DEPARTMENT, TO INTERNATIONAL/GLOBAL STUDIES, TO HIS STUDENTS, AND TO PURDUE UNIVERSITY CALUMET, DR.KAMALIPOUR HAS BEEN A GOOD CITIZEN OF THIS CAMPUS WHO HAS CONTRIBUTED MUCH TO MAKING PUC A TRUE COMMUNITY OF SCHOLARS AND STUDENTS. THE ATTACK ON HIS REPUTATION IS AND SHOULD BE A DEEP CONCERN TO ALL HIS COLLEAGUES, INCLUDING MYSELF. IT IS ON THIS BASIS THAT I HAVE CHOSEN TO SIGN THIS PETITION.”
– DR. SAUL LERNER

“Dr. Kamalipour served on my graduate committee. It saddens me to reply to such absurd allegations. Dr. Kamalipour consistently shows the utmost respect for all perspectives.”
– Jim Noland

“Dr. Kamalipour is one of the most dedicated educators I have met. During my time at Purdue University Calumet, he always made sacrifices for students in the Communication and Creative Arts Department, regardless of any race, age, gender, etc. Any negative comments made about Dr. Kamalipour are completely false, as proven by the 900 plus signatures above me.”
–Joe Wielosinski

“I have had the opportunity to work closely with Yahya Kamalipour. There is not an anti-American bone in his body. Professor Kamalipour preaches global understanding and cooperation. As immigrants and naturalized citizens, we have the right to express our reservations about US foreign policy; but this has nothing whatsoever to do with being unAmerican. But even in this regard, I find that Professor Kamalipour is moderate and rational. His “activism” is more restrained and sober than most media studies and humanities and social sciences professors. Indeed, I think of him as a pacifist and one who will continue to have a huge impact in his field. As US-Iran relations move to the next phase with a new administration in Tehran, Professor Kamalipour’s centrist and moderate views will have greater significance.”
–Mita Choudhury

“Supporting peace and harmony among the nations require understanding others, respecting them for their culture and tradition, and being compassionate and tolerant. The reasons brought up in the blog are based on infantile arguments and superficial observations. I doubt if any in the academic community find them creditable to draw any conclusion from.”
–Jamshid Damooei

“I have known Yahya for approximately 13 years, and in that time have never experienced anything but kindness from him. He is an honorable man and I am saddened that a fellow faculty member would suggest otherwise.”
–Lee Lavery

“The author of the blog could not have been further from the truth … Academic exchange … should not know any limit … this guy is probably only jealous because he can’t find use for himself or his work beyond his own university.”
–Naeim Karimi

“The Professor Y. Kamalipour I have known for years represents the best of what we accept as the epitome of American values: respect, freedom and free speech, equality, liberty, tolerance and kindness to friends to foes alike. He represents altruism and academic integrity. His valuable contributions to the discipline of international media studies ought to make every resident of the state of Indiana very proud.”
–Dr. Thimios Zaharopoulos, Provost, The American College of Greece

“Yahya Kamalipour’s personal integrity is not in danger from a bully and a libeler like Maurice Eisenstein. Eisenstein’s vicious ignorance threatens the personal integrity of his silent supporters, including members of the Purdue administration and tenured faculty.”
–Ruth S. Turpin

“Dr. Kamalipour is exactly the kind of public intellectual that the world needs to combat all kinds of narrow mindedness, fanatical religious extremism, and irrational violence. Those who lie about him are only attempting to advance their own fanatical agendas.”
–Dr. Alan Spector

“Not only have the attacks violated the norms of academic collegiality and basic human civility, the attacks are directed at one of the most sincere, honest, and compassionate in our midst. Disagreement is fine, even welcome, but unethical and pernicious dishonesty must be roundly rejected.”
–Dr. Lee Artz

“Professor Kamalipour is one of the people most committed to the life of the mind and open, rational inquiry I have ever met. His edited volume on the presidential election protests in 2009 demonstrates unequivocally his balanced, thoughtful, and scholarly approach towards Iranian politics. The accusations leveled against him are ridiculous and not in keeping with the nature of universities and scholarly life–they were meant to intimidate. I feel I have been fortunate to work with him and I ask that Purdue offer its unqualified support of Prof. Kamalipour.”
–Prof. Jonathan M. Acuff

“Yahya was a great colleague and friend while I was a member of the faculty at PUC. This attack is uncalled for. It is time for the administration to act in response to this slander.”
–Linda Mura

“Professor Yahya Kamalipour is a well-known colleague within the academic community and a well-respected promoter of peace and international cooperation in Iran and elsewhere. In my opinion, attacking such a peaceful, caring, and dedicated educator is not only outrageous but cruel, inhumane, and discriminatory. Clearly, those who stoop to such a low level of professional conduct have sinister motives and do not subscribe to the accepted norms of ethics and fairness. I have no doubt that such people will ultimately lose their own credibility (if they have any).”
–Dr Mehdi Mahdavinia, School Principal

“Prof. Kamalipour has been a leader in promoting international understanding and scholarship in global media. So sorry to see this attack which appears to be directed at the professor’s religious faith.”
–Rhonda Zaharna

“I met with Prof Yahaya Kamalipour in two times in my University, University of Calcutta. I admire him, I respect him, love him too as a father figure. Every time, I got an immediate reply and his kind support when I had shared my problems in the academic sphere. I support the content of the petition and demand for a proper investigation so that it could be revealed who are behind it. Thanking all of you who take initiative to start this campaign.”
– Sincere regards, Rajesh Das Assistant Professor & Teacher-in-Charge Department of Mass Communication The University of Burdwan University of Burdwan,Golapbag West Bengal, India

“I have absolutely no doubt that the accusations made against Professor Kamalipour are completely false and contradict his commendable professional initiatives as well as the views he has conveyed in his scholarly publications.”
– Dr. Mehdi Mohsenian Rad, Associate Professor of Communication and Culture Imam Sadiq University Tehran, Iran

“Yahya R Kamalipour, who has been a dear professor to many of us in Communications Department and beyond, are outraged at a libelous and defamatory blog by a PUC associate professor about Yahya. Such conduct by a university colleague is reprehensible, and he should be dismissed for cause by PUC for this vicious and unprovoked attacked on Professor Kamalipour.”
–Larry A Brechner

“Dr. Yahya Kamalipour has been one of my best friends and colleagues for over 22 years. He has been a tireless advocate for world peace and justice, and an outstanding colleague in the fields of international and intercultural communication. He is also a man of impeccable integrity that nobody can doubt or question at all. I am extremely dismayed that a fellow faculty member would criticize his efforts and intentions. Therefore, the university must restore Dr. Kamalipour’s dignity and pride ASAP.”
–Dr. Mahboub Hashem

“Yahya Kamalipour was one of three professors in the Communications Dept at PUC I chose for my Comprehensive Exams after completing Graduate School. In fact, I took several of his classes. I’ve also served on committees with him. In all cases, he has always espoused moderation, tolerance and understanding.”
–Carolyn L Moore

“It is a shame that you are teaching in that reputable University, sir. I am very saddened to have to call you a colleague. I am also disgusted by your character assassination. I hope and pray that your students will respond to this unprofessional behavior with their good judgment and avoid your classes. You are not worthy of being a Professor and being an unbiased medium between students and good citizenship.”
–Professor Hamid Zangeneh

“Yahya is an outstanding Professor and leader in the communications field. His academic leadership at PUC is well known, his accomplishments are numerous and he is one of the finest communication professionals I know.”
–Thomas Carroll

“I have known Dr. Kamalipour for more than 26 year as a colleague and a confidant. I have no doubt that all the allegations against him are baseless and represent bigotry on the part of the person who posted them on Internet.”
–Dr. Reza Varjavand

“I have known Yahya Kamalipour for over 25 years. In that time, he has always proven himself to be a man of good will, professionalism, and sincerity.”
–Dennis H. Barbour

“I know Prof. Yahya from the frequent times I met him in the Rhodes Forum of the World Public Forum / Dialogue of Civilizations and I dismiss the accusations leveled against him, and vouch as to his spirit of dialogue and tolerance.”
–Father Boulos Wehbe

“I believe that the accusations made against Professor Kamalipour are completely unjustified. The accuser is promoting hatred amongst people from diverse cultural, social, and religious background by what he has unjustifiably accused Professor Kamalipour of. I am a faculty member at Texas A&M University and have known Professor Kamalipour for more than 20 years. He is and has always been an active in promoting peace, and understanding among different nations of the world. I am shocked to see how some extremists take their own agenda of hatred and intolerance through smearing other supporters of peace and understanding. Purdue University should take immediate actions to restore the reputation of Professor Kamalipour and to support him and scholars like him to enhance intercultural communication among the people of diverse background.”
–Zohreh Eslami

“Dr. Kamalipour is a valued colleague of great personal and professional integrity.”
–Martine Duchatelet

“I worked with Dr. Kamalipour for several years while I was at Purdue University Calumet. I cannot believe any of the accusations made against him.”
–Michael A. Gealt, Ph.D.

“Dr. Kamalipour is one if the most honorable; non biased persons that I know. He and I have been colleagues for 30 years. I very much value his professionalism and integrity.”
–Charles Winer

“I am both shocked and disgusted by the accusations against Professor Kamalipour. He has dedicated his work to bringing understanding and peace among all people. Such ignorant statements should be ignored since they hold no merit with anyone who knows him.”
–Shirin Hormozi

“I have always held Dr. Yahya Kamalipour in high regard, both as a professor and mentor. Throughout my years at Purdue Calumet, I had the pleasure of taking 5 different courses from him. His lectures were consistently positive and intellectually stimulating and there are many things that still stand out in my mind even 15 years later. I distinctly remember when one of his books was released and he had a signing at Borders book store. I bought his book and had him autograph it for me because I respected his accomplishments and was proud to be one of his students! As a matter of fact, he was the professor who encouraged me to pursue a Doctoral degree when I went to him asking about his thoughts on Masters degrees. Currently, I am on the path to doing both of those things. I most likely would not have even considered a Doctoral degree if it weren’t for Dr. Kamalipour….that is how much impact he made on me! I am extremely saddened and outraged that someone in academia could make an attack like this on Dr. Kamalipour. I am in full support of Dr. Kamalipour and I sincerely hope that appropriate actions are taken against this other professor.”
– Jodi L. Drake

“I have worked with Yahya for over 17 years and am horrified by the false accusations made about him. I have only known him to be an upstanding citizen of the United States, who is guided by his professionalism, integrity and his compassion. It has been and continues to be an honor to work with him.”
–Cathy Gillotti

“It is shameful that some people who have no moral values are allowed to work at the universities and worse than that try to defame others of high character and values.”
–Dr. Majid Rassouli

“This is preposterous. Professor Kamalipour is one of the mostly widely respected publishers in international communication. I have written a chapter for one of his books, which was an objective examination of world media systems. The person who wrote this blog is a self-serving xenophobe.”
–Robert McKenzie

“I read the blog over and over again. My intention was to remain impartial, to judge the piece by its content, and to not allow our friendship with Dr. Kamalipour affect my conclusion. I realized that the shortsighted blog carried so much contradiction. The writer claimed to hold higher moral qualities while his writing revealed otherwise. This is disappointing to see the extent to which one’s bias may affect his/her opinion of others especially when the person is expressing his prejudiced attitude in professional setting. I certainly did not expect such behavior from a professor! All humans are equal in fundamental worth. Dr. Kamalipour’s idea of global social equality is visionary. He has good intentions, and is broadminded. This is the root of how he can connect with all people from different walks of life worldwide. His public-spirited views should be followed by leaders of all people, now more than ever! As Saadi Shirazi said: Human beings are members of a whole, In creation of one essence and soul. If one member is afflicted with pain, Other members uneasy will remain. If you’ve no sympathy for human pain, The name of human you cannot retain!”
–Dr. Saeed Darbandi, MD

“End this racist attitude and respect the dignity and achievements of this man who has been so important to Purdue Calumet. You should be ashamed of yourself.”
–John L. Wood, playwright

“As an Indiana resident and taxpayer, I Googled Yahya Kamalipour and Maurice Eisenstein and arrived at the following conclusions: (1) I am fortunate to know Professor Kamalipour, (2) Purdue should be even more fortunate to have such a respected and thoughtful scholar; (3) I am fortunate to NOT know Professor Eisenstein, and (4) Purdue should be ashamed of retaining and subjecting our young people to such a biased person. While searching, I also came across a petition, signed by over 1000 students, asking the Purdue administration to dismiss Eisenstein: https://www.change.org/petitions/purdue-university-calumet-terminate-professor-maurice-eisenstein-2. Enough is enough!”
–Hebert Goodrich

“There are few people whom I really know, and still fewer of whom I think well. The world is really becoming a global village, especially in communication and the dissemination of information with people like Prof. Yahya Kamalipour.”
–Dr. Bahodoor Kosimov, Dushanbe, Tajikistan

“I was his advisor at the University of Missouri where he received his Ph.D. I know him very well and I am amazed that someone could make such accusations against this man who works totally for world peace and mutual understanding.”
–Michael Porter

“I first met Professor Kamalipour at an interfaith conference held in a Sikh temple in Kenya. The conference was held by a group called “Globalization for the Common Good.” I have read his academic books. His autobiography brought tears to my eyes. It melts a heart of flint. The viciously racist and ignorant attack on such an accomplished and decent academic with a record of promoting peace, human rights, reconciliation and interfaith understanding is shocking. This is reminiscent of the attacks on Jewish members of academia in Nazi Germany where they were lambasted for being Semitic propaganda and “orientalizing” attitudes. That was a code word for being born Jewish. Kamalipour is called by this detractor a “Muslim.” That is apparently indictment enough! Then Kamalipour is tarred and feathered because he goes to Iran and teaches at universities there? That, to the author, appears to be evidence that he is somehow connected to nefarious activities. This kind of hatred has no place in academic environments. It is to be confronted head on. Appropriate Perdue University committees in charge of academic conduct must bring the accuser up for charges of conduct unbecoming of a faculty member.”
–Ahmad Sadri

“I heartily endorse this petition and the sentiments expressed on behalf of Professor Kamalipour. There is no room on the Internet for character defamation and this kind of vitriol.”
–Hart Cohen

“Professor Dr. Yahya Kamalipour is great man with high professional stature. He always intends to make the world a peaceful place for all human being. I strongly condemn the malicious propaganda against him. He is a man who always believes above the race, cast and culture.”
– Professor Dr. Syed Abdul Siraj

“Are you kidding me? Dr. Kamalipour is a tireless worker for global peace and justice, and a true giant in the field of international communication. He is a man of impeccable integrity and outstanding intentions. I am dismayed a fellow faculty member would criticize his efforts.”
–Ralph D, Berenger

“This is shocking. Yahya is a close friend and a wonderful scholar, a fine gentlemen. I condemn such attempts to malign him.”
–Buroshiva Dasgupta

It is incredible to me that anyone would question Dr. Kamalipour’s integrity or loyalty. He is a top-notch educator and citizen!
–Milan Dakich

“The attack on Prof. Yahya is vicious and totally uncalled for. The attacker’s dubious intentions are clear from his blog. It is not an academic critique; it is a hate speech, pure and simple.”
– Mumtaz Ahmad

“This person’s actions are a great embarrassment to our institution.”
–Colin Fewer

“It isn’t the first time that Maurice Eisenstein accusing people and I am pretty sure that wouldn’t be the last time. I was student in Purdue university and I’ve seen by my eyes that he is the symbol of the anger and anti peace movement. He always looks for the origin of peace and try to attack it in the manner to justify his anger. Now he found out the instrumental role of prof Kamalipour in connecting Purdue University to most of Muslim Country which it was quite profitable and educational for Purdue University. I, Amirhasan, on behalf of Purdue University alumni Support the peace way that paved by Prof Kamalipour during his 30 years efforts to promote peace and honestly.”
–Amirhasan Hakimiyan

“What is written is very untrue about Prof. Kamalipour. He is a great scholar and always a defender of free speech and respect to all opnions and prespectives! I have edited with him a special collection of essays on the right to communicate (as one of the basic human rights).. It is fair to say that his scholarship has been a real mentorship for many scholars, researchers, and communication academics in the world.”
–Dr. Aliaa Dakroury

“Dr Kamalipur is doing a great job for intercultural and inter-religious understanding. I am stunned to see that someone like his accuser, who is obviously a racist and a religious bigot, teaches political science at Purdue Calumet!”
–Tapas Ray

“I know Prof Yahya for more than 15 years. Just last year, he came to Malaysia and gave a very formative speech on “Digital Publishing”. Still, I’m hearing from my students that “wish to see him again”. I’m sure across the world 1000s people and lives have been inspired by him. I don’t think nobody can even imaging doubt on his contribution to the world of communication, media, International relation, culture and etc. I hope all his accuser would be such Illiterate, fool, and irresponsible guy (I’m avoiding of mentioning his name to not promoting him!!!). This guy should go and read the history and see why US is like what we can see today? He should understand the concept and philosophy of freedom of opinion and expression! not simply claiming, he should understand the developing countries’ elites’ contribution to the development of United States!! But unfortunately, his short memory did not allow him to see Prof Yahya’s Journal, Global media Journal, Prof Yahya’s Association, Global Communication Association and etc. Prof Yahya in not a person anymore, he is global phenomena, How to ignore him?!I think the best way to react on this guy’s accusation is in one Arab proverb saying that “Whenever you face with a fool guy’s statement, Just say Hello!”(اذا خاطبهم الجاهلون قالوا سلاما). At the end, I don’t think that this guy even can find Iran on the map!! let alone talking about it!!!”
–Dr.Abbas Ghanbari, Reporter and Lecturer in Malaysia

“As a former international student at Purdue, I find it deeply disconcerting that Professor Kamalipour’s good name is being slandered in this manner. He has always been very supportive of education, communication, intercultural understanding and friendship. The affront on his character is unfounded, childish and petty.”
–Ivan Guerrero, MA in Communication

“Yahya is a world-renowned scholar and a wonderful human being. The attack against him is a baseless and cowardly act lacking any rational justification. Shame on Eisenstein!”
–Vytenis B. Damusis

“Freedom of speech is everyone’s right. But given that these claims are outlandish and untrue, I hope that Purdue University Calumet goes out and publicly supports Yahya. This would be a start in helping him to protect his good name.”
–Prof. Philip J. Auter

“I knew Professor Kamalipour for more than a decade and I understand that his excellent scholarly research and projects are recognized world- wide. I have no doubt that his tireless efforts and genuine interest in the field of Global Communication did play good part in promotion global peace building.”
–Dr. Hussein Amin

“Prof. Yahya Kamalipour is an outstanding scholar, teacher, friend and a wonderful person. He is friend to many and respected by all: A man of vision and a man on the mission to serve the common good.”
–Prof. Kamran Mofid

“Professor Kamalipour is an outstanding scholar of international repute. He has provided honor to this University. We are lucky to have him on faculty at PUC.”
–Joseph L. Wetchler, Ph.D.

“It was a big shock!!! I strongly condemn the malicious propaganda against Professor Dr. Yahya Kamalipour, who has worked tirelessly for the freedom for all humanity. He is a great man, , and in spite of his major reputation, he is warm hearted and an active promoter of global peace and mutual understanding. I learned a lot from him. I know Prof. Kamalipour for many years and in the pass of time, he has always proven himself to be a man of good will, and sincerity. Purdue University must be very proud of him.”
–Dr.Tahereh Ebrahimi far, Associate Prof. of Islamic Azad University

“First of all I want to pass my greetings to all those who love and respect the science. My honored greetings for Dr. Yahya Kamalipour who sacrifices himself in order to promote the contemporary thinking in the science world. Every single dispute against this is considered as a stereotype and will not take place in great minds’ thinking. We do appreciate Dr. Kamalipour’s endless effort in building up the contemporary way of thinking and wish him a long life. A fully support from Malaysia – Communication students.”
– Sincerely, Djezair Ziberi, Communication Student / Malaysia

“I whole heartedly support Dr. Yahya Kamalipour. The defamatory remarks made in the questioned hate filled blog are unfounded and offensive. Upon meeting Yahya, I felt a sense of peacefulness that exuded from his personality and continue to feel that way every time I see him. I agree with the aforementioned quote “Qui tacet consentire videtur,” meaning “He who is silent implies consent.” I for one will voice my support and I urge others to do the same.”
–Jennifer Muha, Graduate Assistant at Purdue University Calumet

“I have known and worked with Yahya Kamalipour for more than 20 years. In that time I have found him consistently to display the highest regard for students and colleagues. I have never observed any incidence of disrespect, and I have never heard him utter a word that could be interpreted as unpatriotic or anti-American. I am disgusted by the claims against him. I am astonished at the lack of timely and appropriate reaction by the leadership of this university. This situation seems to me to be a total perversion of the concept of Freedom of Expression.”
–Dr. Willilam L. Robinson

“Übersetzung I know Prof. Kamalipour as a sincere and helpful colleagues. Collaboration is always at a high scientific level. the friendly and open nature of Professor Kamalipour is impressing me every time we met during the last years. He is a wonderful colleague and friend!”
–Prof. Dr. Mike Friedrichsen

“Professor Kamalipour is a person of the highest moral integrity and academic honor. The blog post vilifying Dr. Kamalipour is completely irrational, and an anathema to analytical academic inquiry and rhetoric. The blog, posted by a Purdue professor, is an embarrassment to the institution.”
–Dr. Deirdre Johnston, Professor of Communication, Hope College, Holland, Michigan

“My wife and I traveled to Iran with Yahya Kamalipour in 2005 where all three of us spoke to the Second International Conference on Public Relations in Iran, sponsored by Kargozar Public Relations Institute. Such travels are important for normalizing relationships between the people of Iran and the people of the United States. Yahya is doing the world a great service by helping to establish such relationships. He is a fine scholar, a true gentleman, and a peacemaker who should be supported and not attacked.”
–James E. Grunig

“I have known Yahya Kamalipour for seven years through GCGI conferences and have found him to be a person who is peaceful, thoughtful, a promoter of harmony, an excellent communicator and a contributor to international and inter-religious understanding serving the common good. He is a kind and helpful colleague and does not deserve to be subjected to this outrageous accusation.”
–Ann Hallock

“Any intellectual has the right to express his or his opinion, for which he should not be dubbed as anti Kushal or pro us is not correct at all. The vilification campaign is. Not in good test and spirit. It should be stopped. If anybody has any difference of opinion with him, he has. The right to express that in a polite manner. Professor Yahya s Muslim origin should not be brought into the debate. it is not acceptable in an. Intellectual debate.”
–Professor arun moohanty, javahearlal Nehru university, India

“For more than a decade, I have been working with Dr. Yahya Kamalipour in three different areas: First, as a journalist, I have had many interviews with him, the core of each has been: love, peace, friendship, and a world without war, violence and feud. Second, as a visiting scholar at Purdue, I was witnessing how he did his best to teach not only the academic materials, but also the moral lessons to his students to become “a better person for “self and for respect others”. Third, while writing his biography, I spent tens of hours listening to Dr. Kamalipour’s life-story, from his early ages to the recent years. This means that I am very familiar with event of his personal and professional life; a life that he has devoted to promoting the concepts of love, peace, mutual-respect, cooperation, and global harmony. Ironically, such a peace-promoter has been attached openly and publically on the Internet. After serving his entire life to spread the seeds of goodness, an extremist person (Mr. Eisenstein) is trying to tarnish Dr. Kamalipour’s reputation by manipulating the facts and presenting an untrue picture of him. This is called “Character Assassination” that is inhuman and should be stopped as soon as possible.”
–Negin Hosseini

“The accusations against Prof. Kamalipour are outrageous and should have no place in a University setting. He has been a formidable force for understanding and tolerance, and it is unacceptable seeing him being subjected to this disgraceful treatment.”
–Trita Parsi

“I was very disappointed to read the baseless hatred-inciting comments made against Prof. Kamalipour, who I have know for almost twenty-five years. We need to join hands to promote tolerance, coexistence and peace in the world. In an increasingly pluralistic society that we are in now, nothing is more important, particularly for educated people, to stand up against such unacceptable hate mongering.”
–Prof.Jamaluddin Husain

“Professor Yahya Kamalipour is a well-respected scholar in the field of global communication studies. As a fellow visible minority scholar working in the North American academy, I fully understand the devastating consequences of this kind of hate-speech and blatant racism against Professor Professor Yahya Kamalipour. it is essential that Professor Yahya Kamalipour’s personal integrity and reputation be restored through appropriate actions by the university.”
–Yuezhi Zhao

“I have personally known Dr. Kamalipour for more than twenty years. During this period I have come to appreciate his deep commitment to human rights and decency and his relentless pursuit of global understanding.”
–Taghi Arshami

“I respect and admire Prof. Yahya Kamalipour. I’ve known Yahya for over sixteen (16) years, starting as a new graduate student entering the department at Purdue Calumet, and, since then, as a disciplinary colleague. It’s been my experience that Yahya is nothing but the most upstanding, engaged, and enthusiastic American, dedicated to his family, profession, community, and country. In turn, he maintains a stellar reputation nationally and internationally as a scholar. Put simply: Prof. Kamalipour has my unwavering support.”
–Keith Berry, Ph.D.

“As a former student (MA 1996) of Professor Kamalipour’s, it’s hard for me to image anyone having an unkind word to say about him. I remember him being a wonderful professor, and I thoroughly enjoyed learning under his instruction. He was highly respected amongst his peers and his students. I pray the university will stand by him and fully support him during this difficult time.”
–Sherita S. Smith

“Dear Professor Kamalipour, As you know, there is a Persian proverb that cites “جواب ابلهان خاموشی است” pronounced “Javabe Ablahan Khamooshist” and is loosely translates as “it is futile to respond to or engage idiots”. So according to the proverb silence is the best answer. However, in my opinion these words of wisdom do not apply in every case. Having read the defaming statements about you, it appears to me that those verbal attacks on you and your professional integrity are not simply a case of stupidity. They are in fact an attempt to defame, intimidate, and deny your academic freedom. Professor Kamalipour, as you know these types of attacks are well documented and are nothing more than a borrowed page from the playbook used by others to slander, defame and intimidate. In fact your Political Science colleague may view his slanderous BLOGs as an opportunity to promote himself and perhaps attract national attention. Once again, this is hardly original; it is out of the same playbook used by others who seek publicity. So, my advice to you is to take a deep breath, personally forgive and forget the hurtful remarks made about you. At the same time obtain the best legal representation possible and take legal action against the “gentleman” for defamation. This may be a harsh response and not part of your character, but in my opinion it is essential. Bullies don’t stop on their own; they stop because someone stops them. As for Purdue University, I urge the administration to publicly acknowledge professor Kamalipour’s contributions to the university and his discipline, and support his right to free speech and academic freedom. I further urge the university administration to take appropriate disciplinary action (in accordance with the faculty handbook and code of conduct), against the offender, so to minimize future attempts to defame university staff and faculty.”
–Best Wishes, Hossein Hakimzadeh, Associate Professor and Director of Informatics Indiana University South Bend

“Maurice Eisenstein should be fired. He appears to be mentally unfit, and could be a real threat to the safety of the campus community. He is tarnishing Purdue Calumet’s image. I am embarrassed to say I graduated from Purdue Calumet at this time. Yahya is one of the best professors I have ever had. Truly a man of sound character and integrity. Please fire Eisenstein.”
–Jocelyn (Gallegos) Prue

“I strongly urge that Purdue University take immediate action to support Dr. Kamalipour. He is a distinguished professor with great integrity and a global reputation as a leader in the field of communication studies.”
–Dr. Vincent Mosco, Queen’s University, Canada

“I cannot believe that this can be done to someone like Dr. Yahya, who has worked hard so far in the world of global communications for a peaceful world. It is indeed a great pity and utterly shameful deed to try and malign him in society. The offenders should be taken to the court of law for justice; of course this will not return anything to the damage done to his genuine reputation. Our support from India to a world communications crusader! God bless.”
–KRISHNA B MARIYANKA

“Prof. Kamalipour has long been a most active promoter of peace, love and understanding among different people. Our world need love, love and love. We don’t want hate.”
–Prof.and Dean Li Xiguang

“I knew Professor Kamalipour and his family before I began working at PUC in 2003. We live in the same town; our children attended the same schools….grade school through high school. In addition, I took at class that Dr. Kamalipour taught, and have attended various campus events that Dr. Kamalipour attended. I have NEVER in all of the years that I have known Dr. Kamalipour, to be nothing less than an upstanding, respectable, mild-mannered, citizen and professor.”
–Laura Matthies

“I have had the honour of knowing Professor Kamalipour on various levels; most important, as a scholar whose publications have been inspirational to me, but also as a co-editor of a book about the right to communicate, editor of a book in which I contributed a chapter, and a founder and leader of a global network of journals, one of which I am editing. In all these capacities, I found Yahya to be a role model for young and established scholars when it comes to ethics, respect, and excellence. Professor Kamalipour is all about global cooperation, tolerance, and peace. This is his wonderful reputation that I realize it every time his name is mentioned among colleagues that I meet with globally. His energetic and enthusiastic personality guides people around him to master but high quality achievements. Reading carefully and deeply what the accuser quoted from Professor Kamalipour’s article clearly confirms that Yahya is a great advocate of mutual respect and cooperation among human beings of all cultures and in all regions. Such quote is an amazing statement that is, in fact, in favour of Yahya; instead, the accuser interprets it in a way that is clearly ignorant, biased, racist, and hostile. Anyone who does not recognize the goodness in Yahya’s personality and dedication to helping and respecting others regardless of their race, gender, ethnicity, culture, etc., is a blind and deaf person. Like physicians who must prescribe medications to their patients to fight viruses in their bodies, the university must take strong actions against the accuser to stop him from spreading his disastrous ideas.”
–Mahmoud Eid, Associate Professor, Department of Communication, University of Ottawa

“I have known of Yahya’s work and contributed chapters to his books for years, since my days at Tel Aviv University as professor of communication and chair of the department and through my current position as the Interim Dean at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Yahya’s reputation in peace-building, international collaborations and tolerance stands out in our field and I have heard much praise for his decades of work in these areas. He is the kind of engaged scholar that sets an example to many others.”
–Dr. Dafna Lemish

“Professor Yahya Kamalipour is a good friend of mine and also a respectable scholar who has diligently promoted cross-cultural understandings and global communication for years. I feel sorry to see such unfair attack on Professor Yahya Kamalipour’s personal and professional integrity. The fierce, discriminatory, and baseless accusations are certainly discouraging and unwanted. Again, I feel sorry to see this, especially in academia and in this global village.”
–Chris Chen

“Dr. Kamalipour is a highly respected scholar in the field of communication. He has given us the opportunity to publish our research in the Global Media Journal, a chance created for the exchange of ideas and advancement of research. I have personally published several articles in this journal both in the Arab and the International editions. Anyone who spreads rumors about him is wrong and unfair.”
–Naila Hamdy

“To anyone that has worked with or knows Professor Kamalipour the claims advanced are little more than spurious and hateful nonsense. Indeed, they reveal far more about the character and politics of his accuser, than the good professor.”
–Daniel Pare, Associate Professor, University of Ottawa, Department of Communication, School of Information Studies & Institute for Science, Society and Policy (ISSP)

“This type of scurrilous attack undermines open inquiry, debate and the university environment. It creates a climate where people fear to speak for fear of having a goon squad attack them and drag their name through the mud. (That is the precise objective of the attack.) Most important, it also wrongfully demeans the reputation and stature of a scholar with an impeccable record.”
–Robert W. McChesney, Gutgsell Endowed Professor University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

“Normally, I would just ignore such ridiculous remarks as made in this blog as these pure inventions are basically just a cry for attention on the internet. However, I do believe that sadly however fictitious a story, these words do hurt and can mislead. So just to be clear, Prof. Kamalipour is one of the most open and warm people I have ever known. He has embraced and encouraged people from diverse cultures to dialogue and created multiple events to foster such intercultural spaces. In spite of his major reputation and accomplishments, Yahya extremely humble and warm hearted!”
– Dr. Payal Arora

“I have always had – and continue to have – great respect for Professor Yahya Kamalipour. He has represented the university, as well as his field and the academy in general, professionally, ethically and conscientiously. He has my full support.”
–John Rowan

“I have read the slanderous blog posting and find the individual’s interpretation of Professor Kamalipour’s comments and tireless work for peace and intercultural understanding is fueled by ignorance and xenophobia and worthy of nothing more than casual dismissal. It is sad that Professor Kamalipour, an individual of such high personal integrity and strong commitment to peace, religious tolerance and cultural understanding, should be so maligned by “mmeisens” is beyond comprehension. I can only assume the author of this vitriol is either delusional or grinding a personal axe for some unknown purpose.”
– Michael R. Ogden

“I am surprised at the authorities in the US to let a person like Mushe Eisenstein inflict such horrible hate at a decent person such as Dr. Kamalipour. I hope our friends in the US realise that this person hates Muslims even those who he does not know and has not ever met.”
–Dr. Alireza Dehghan

“Never in more than 25 years that I have known Yahya Kamalipour professionally and personally have I never heard him say an unkind word to or about anyone. The accusations against him are baseless. He is a true gentleman and scholar, and a credit to Purdue University. I am proud to be his colleague and friend, and stand with him.”
–Dr. John R. Rosenbaum

“I have known Dr. Kamalipour for years. I have had the fortunate opportunity to learn from him as a student and to work with him professionally after my studies. I have personally seen the sense of peace and balance he carries into projects and relationships he has built across the globe. I am proud to know him and support the spirit of this petition.”
–Christopher Kosovich

“My great instructor professor Yahya Kamalipour is a real symbol of pure inter cultural communication promoter so all accusations made against him must be stopped right now.”
–Dr. Peyman JEBELLI

“Prof. Kamalipour is one the best persons I have ever met, he is a peace man and I worked with him .. So I’m supporting him for his kindness as a human being.”
–Dr. Mohamed Satour

“I have known Dr. Kamalipour for over 24 years. Professor Kamalipour is a dedicated scholar with an international reputation in his field. He is a man of integrity and an advocate for free expression and coexistence. I am amazed that our colleagues at Purdue are letting such baseless allegations against professor Kamalipour to go un-noticed. The person making these allegations against Dr. Kamalipour should not be allowed to stand in front of classroom and play with our young peoples’ minds.”
–Dr. Mohammad A. Zahraee, Professor & Assistant Dean, Purdue University Calumet

“I have worked for and with Dr. Kamilipour. I find him to be a man of excellence and integrity. Anyone who says otherwise, doesn’t know him personally.”
–Felicia Middlebrooks

“I have known Dr. Kamalipour for over 25 years and know him to be a highly dedicated instructor and researcher. Dr. Kamalipour has made numerous scholarly contributions to the field of international communication. Earlier this year, Dr. Kamalipour was selected as the 2013 recipient of the Information and Telecommunications Education and Research Award for research given his work in helping to advance international media and communication though the start-up of the Global Media Journal; arguably the first and one of the most respected on-line journals of its kind. I find it amazing that a colleague from the same institution would take it upon himself to criticize and slander a fellow colleague. It goes without saying that Dr. Kamalipour is probably one of the most well-connected international specialists at Calumet-Purdue. The people he is in regular contact with are some of the best and most highly respected scholars in the field of international communication. They are not fire breathing jihadists as his critic would suggest. Such ridiculous criticism and political posturing reflects badly on both the Professor in question as well as Purdue-Calumet that would allow such irresponsible conduct to take place. I encourage you to remedy the situation as quickly as possible since a loyal and dedicated educator’s reputation is needlessly being tarnished.”
–Dr. Richard Gershon

“I have known Yahya Kamalipour for 30 years. He is a respected colleague and friend. We have shared membership in the intercultural divisions of associations such as the International Communication Association, which promote the achievement of peace through discourse, not war. Yahya is not the radical in this situation. He is an advocate of peace and tolerance for all people. I am shocked at the hate rhetoric that has been directed against him. This man has taken words of peace and interpreted them as words of war. I am a graduate of Indiana University at Bloomington and a citizen of the United States, although I followed my Scottish husband to Canada many years ago. I have only fond memories of Indiana and the many friends that I made during my years in your state. I think it is a blemish on Purdue University that an employee would engage in this kind of defamatory rhetoric, not only against Yahya, but also against other groups in society. I hope you will take action against the individual who has shown himself to be a true radical. (I also note that this man is railing in his blog against your regional campus at Oman, one of the Middle Eastern countries with an excellent human rights record and not harbouring of radical groups. With the support of the Canadian government, the engineering firm for whom my son works has recently established an operation in that country. His experience has been extremely positive. We cannot paint all people with the same brush. My husband, who was a bomber pilot for the RAF in the second world but also completely anti-war, once said that civilization has very thin veneer. Unfortunately, we see that reality in the inflammatory words that appear in the online blog of this reactionary and hate-filled individual.”
– Dr. Sherry Devereaux Ferguson

“It is truly shameful that such a highly regarded scholar has been subjected to this discrimination.”
–Debra M. Clarke, Associate Professor, Trent University

“I have known Professor Kamalipour for almost 20 years. His scholarly credentials are impeccable. Furthermore, his professional and personal motivations are deeply rooted in democratic values. In fact, his frequent travels to Iran and his scholarship on Iran should be seen as “citizen diplomacy” that benefits the US by promoting democracy. I would like to comment on Maurice Eisenstein’s actions in order to contrast these men’s moral character ; however, I fear that I would be sued. If such a comparison were made, it would be clear that the allegations against Professor Kamalipour are entirely without merit. Finally, it’s outrageous that in the past PUC has ruled that Eisenstein’s hate speech is protected under the first amendment. That is actually true, but it is a red herring. The real issue is whether such speech can be considered evidence of competent teaching.”
–Colette Morrow

“Dr. Kamalipour has a well-deserved international reputation for his numerous scholarly books and articles. To defame his name with false allegations is reprehensible.”
– Jane Campbell

“I have known Prof. Yahya Kamalipour aa a friend and colleague for many years. Without hesitation, I can say that he is a person of great integrity with high ethical quality that our world needs many like him. He has always been an advocate of human rights and world peace. For certain there is no place in his mind for discrimination regarding any race, color, nationality, religion and gender. I whole heartedly support his efforts to continue serving as advocate of world piece and restoration of human rights for all.”
–Dr. Reza Najafzadeh

“Professor Kamalipour is a symbol of love, friendship, tolerance, respect , generosity and supporting others in this path. I am proud of his friendship.”
–Ali Akbar Abdolrashidi

“I hope this will instigate further action by the University to protect their faculty and students and will force them to address situations that require change in policy.”
–Becki Voltz

“Professor Yahya is amongst the few media scholars who dedicated his life towards research and media development. His insights are quite valuable and enriched the field. I am totally against any accusations that take place against such a precious media scholar.”
–Rasha Allam

“Dr. Kamalipour is a well-regarded scholar of media forms and practices in a global context. He is the creator and editor of Global Media Journal which has been an important publication in enabling our field’s understanding of global media. It has also fostered a culture of multicultural and transnational understanding. It is important to recognize, appreciate and support a scholar who has worked hard to foster cross cultural communication over his entire career.”
Sincerely, Andy Kavoori Professor Grady College of Journalism & Mass Communication The University of Georgia Athens

“I oppose the smear campaign launched against Professor Kamalipour, who is an internationally-acclaimed scholar with the highest ethical standards. His appealing personality and impressive scholarship speak to his decency and commitment to the human mission of communication as a force of peace and understanding.”
–Dr. Mohammad Ayish

“I know of Dr. Kamalipour through his work; the Global Communication Association and the suite of Global Media Journals. He is a model and an inspiration in the area of globalization for the common good.”
–Heather Morrison

“Dr. Kamalipour is a respected member of the Purdue University Calumet academic campus and I find these accusations made against him deplorable. Working with him both as a student at PUC and with him as a public relations professional, he was always respectful of others’ needs and offered his support in all situations. I now offer him my support for the administration at Purdue University Calumet to restore the personal integrity and global reputation of Professor Kamalipour.”
–Kathleen L. Berda

“Personal attacks on people are the weapon of choice of many Zionists to science any view contradicting their own. There is only one reason for that and it is that they do NOT have a case. Their lies are being exposed day by day and by very decent Jews like Ilan Pappe, Shlomo Sand, Miko Peled, Nurit Peled-Alhanan, Norman Finklestien, and many others.”
–Dr. Ibrahim Soudy

“I have known Yahya Kamalipour since 1973. We have been good friends since that time. I know him as a man of integrity, intelligence, a communicator of peace and goodwill for our society and he has shown himself to be a great communicator of these proponents personally and professionally. I know him as a good citizen of the United States and of the world.”
–Farrokh Assadi

“The accusations made against Professor Kamaliour are baseless and false. Dr. Kamalipour’s contribution to scholarship is well recognized and valuable. This hate campaign should be globally condemned.”
–Christy Mady

“The blogger’s verbal defamation of Professor Kamalipour is not only absolutely false in its content, but it is offensive to those of us connected to the education, on the grounds of institutions of higher education as a place for open-mindedness and collegiality. The racist overtone of the piece is appalling and not worthy of professing body of intellectuals. The burden now, in my opinion, lies on the leadership of Purdue University to collectively, publicly and without a hesitation to separate itself from such slander and to restore the public professional reputation of one of its distinguished faculty members.”
–Sholeh Shahrokhi

“Prof. Yaya Kamalipour is a humane individual, an internationally respected scholar, and a tireless advocate for better understanding of international communication. He is a leader in his field.”
–James A. Herrick, Guy Vander Jagt Professor of Communmication, Hope College

“Professor Kamalipour has been my stellar colleague for the 25 years I have worked at PUC. I haved co-edited a book with him and he has given me the opportunity to co-edit a special issue of the Global Media Journal. These allegations made by a troubled individual are blatantly false and do not deserve any recognition. I strongly endorse this petition with the hope that the PUC administration will recognize the seriousness of such allegations and take appropriate action.”
–Dr. Theresa Carilli

“I have known Yahya Kamalipour for two years while enrolled at Purdue University Calumet. The accusations made against him are completely false based on my interactions with Yahya. I have worked with him on a few projects and speaking forums while working on campus. His research does not consist of hateful remarks against the stated minorities.”
–Alex B. Criswell

“Though Dr. Kamalipour has political views and may make choices according to his politics, he is not a political activist and is not affiliated with any political organization or group — whether for or against the Islamic Republic. As for going to Iran, many people, even those who are opposed to the IR but are not an activist or a member of a political organization against the regime, they have no trouble visiting their homeland. Furthermore, Dr. Kamalipour’s interaction with Iranian universities has focused on exchange of knowledge and scholarship, all of it in communication area. These accusations are baseless and detrimental to academic freedom, freedom of expression, and free movement of scholars to different countries.”
–Ali Akbar Mahdi

“I have known Dr. Yahya Kamalipour since the late 1980s. In that time, he has always shown me kindness, compassion, and respect. I am proud to know him, to work with him, and I am appalled that he has to endure such a vicious attack to his reputation.”
–Erin Okamoto Protsman

“Having lived in this wonderful country more than 42 yrs,i find these attacks and innuendos very shameful and should not ever have to enter our great academic institutions. America is much greater than that and stands for much higher values. We are a model society for others to emulate, and if we allow these vicious attacks enter our great institutions, we had caused an irreversible harm that will haunt us for many yrs to come. This is a great nation that stands for equality and acceptance.”
–Fahimeh Moghtader

“Dr. Kamalipour is dedicated to increasing mutual understanding globally through his research and academic leadership. This smear campaign is completely misguided and represents an attack on academic freedom.”
–Rashmi Luthra, Professor, University of Michigan-Dearborn

“As faculty, modeling civility in our lives may be one of the most important lessons we can teach.”
–Joan Dorman

“I am re-signing this petition to make my signature public. There can be no doubt the testimonies here truthfully reflect the peaceful nature with which Dr. Kamalipour pursues his life’s work of spreading tolerance and understanding across borders. He has mentored countless students and taught us to see through the brash recklessness of mediated stereotypes. I can add nothing new, but that I read the attack against Yahya; it seems the person who wrote it does more harm to his own reputation as an intellectual than he does to anyone else. Grammar and spelling errors and all, he ought to worry more about indicting the groups he himself claims to represent. Those who shelter him ought to seriously consider that holding a badger to your breast is a very bad idea.”
–Brian Phillips

“Obviously this is just a lie. We know Professor Kamalipour and we know he has not formal or informal relations with University of Tehran. He is just a very global scholar and he has been contributing to development of a global journal.”
–Dr. Hamid Abdollahyan

“Some of Prof. Eisenstein’s criticisms directed at Purdue University are valid, and he may be right to complain about a double standard in inviting controversial speakers to campus. He is certainly right that some international students and some Muslim students need to be better informed about the reality of the Holocaust, even if they do not like the attention paid to the Holocaust or its alleged exploitation by pro-Israeli voices. Nevertheless, I don’t see in this particular controversy what Prof. Kamalipour has done wrong. I have worked with him on a chapter in one of my journalism textbooks and separately interviewed him for a story I wrote years ago in The Indianapolis Star and my experiences with him have been positive.”
–Abe Aamidor

“I’ve known Prof. Kamalipour for more than 30 years and he deserves the support of Purdue University at a moment like this. He has carried the University’s flag all over the world and championed for diverse ideas and better media coverage on vital issues that affect people all over the world!”
– Manjunath Pendakur, Ph.D.

“Anyone who has worked with Dr. Kamalipour knows that he is a true champion of global peace, so I find this smear campaign particularly outrageous.”
–Patrick D. Murphy, Ph.D. Associate Dean for Research & Graduate Studies School of Media & Communication Temple University

“It is so disappointing that a well-known university as Purdue, allows such a person to keep on brainwashing the students under the name of “freedom of speech”! It is rather freedom of prejudice and insulting and humiliating the other people! Dr. Kamalipour has become a role model for the Iranian young generations, because of his peaceful activities around the globe as well as his personal manner. Purdue University should be accountable to its hired employees!”
–Shahlla Hoseini

“I first met Yahya 25 years ago, when he dropped by my office to check on the progress of one of his student interns. During that conversation, he asked me if I had ever contemplated becoming a teacher. I smiled and explained that in all of my past jobs, there was always a strong teaching component, which I greatly enjoyed. He asked if I would consider submitting a resume (he called it a VITA) for a faculty position in his department, teaching television production courses. After he left my office, I decided to take his advice and the rest is history. To be honest, at that time, I was surprised that PUC would hire a female broadcasting teacher because there were very few females in the production industry, and ALL of my past media teachers were men. What I came to learn is that Yahya doesn’t see people in terms of their gender, age, race, weight, religious beliefs, sexual preferences, etc. He is a visionary and has dedicated his life to making this world a better place for ALL people. His eyes tell you this when you talk with him. His words tell you this when you listen to him. His teaching lessons tell you this when you hear his lectures. His heart tells you this when you watch his behavior and decision making process, and his hands tell you this when they type his thoughts. In all of the time I’ve know him, through all of the interactions I’ve had with him, and in all of the times I’ve witnessed him work and interact with others, I have only seen him show tolerance, compassion and kindness. Anyone who has spent time with him would know that he is a man of peace. As chair of my hiring committee 25 years ago, he considered me equal to the male applicants, and ever since, I have enjoyed a successful career under his kind guidance. In times of great struggle and conflict, I inevitably hear Yahya telling me, as he so often has, “Mary Beth, truth and righteousness will always win. Just be patient.” I sure hope that’s true for this situation.”
–Mary Beth O’Connor

“The biased article against Dr. Kamalipour is self-evidenced. It practically screams “hatred”; the loathsome projection of prejudiced mind. I was perplexed by the writer’s claim to support religions when he actually disregards what is preached by the very same religions in his writing. Should we look for a disguised alternative motive here? The constitution supports freedom of speech but shouldn’t you present the higher moral you claimed to have? Doesn’t your code of ethics mandate you to practice fairness, honesty, dignity, open-mindedness, acceptance (not tolerance) of those who are not like you? The ultimate humane goal is to cross diverse cultures, races, colors, genders, and different lifestyle choices; and meet each other as equivalents at higher ground of civilization. As a teacher with the accountability to be a decent role model, it seems that you are exactly going the other way! Your baseless failed attempt to defame your colleague will only discredit you. Dr. Kamalipour earned my admiration when he wrote: “The need of the hour is to get along with one another and, make friendship, and networks based on mutual respect and understanding.”
– Dr. Susan Yazdanmehr

“No human race is superior; no religious faith is inferior. All collective judgments are wrong. Only racists make them!”
–Sharareh Houshmandyar

“I respect freedom of expression, debate, and dissent among colleagues. If only, we could adhere to principles of truth and intellectual integrity there would be no need for such petitions.”
–Jyotsna Kapur

“The attack on the good name of Professor Yahya Kamalipour seems to be motivated by hate, ignorance and narrow-mindedness. I applaud Yahya’s work to bring understanding among nations, peoples, and religions. Those filled with hate should come to recognize the profound value of such work for all humanity.”
–Prof. Karim H.Karim School of Journalism and Communication Carleton University Ottawa, Canada

“Yahya is a good friend of mine, and in no way even remotely deserved the kind of attack he received on someone’s (Eisenstein) blog at Purdue -Calumet, back in June. Yahya had uttered some words about people all over the world having more inc…ommon than they have apart. He said even though we have differences in religion or no religion, differences in culture and language, that we still have more in common than we do not, and that our commonalities can pave the way to peace and understanding. And for this he was verbally assaulted as somehow being in cahoots with terrorists. The one who assaulted him actually used Yahya’s words about peace and dialogue as supposed evidence that Yahya was up to no good. This is absolutely crazy. I have never before seen such a mismatch of illogical words and irrational arguments made by Yahya’s attacker. Please consider supporting him as he is a very good person, a calm person who deeply cares about peace, social justice, and ecology.”
– Dr. Steve Szeghi Professor of Economics, Wilmington College

“I have worked with Yahya Kamalipour at Purdue Calumet for the past fifteen years. At this university, and at universities around the world, Yahya is known as a prolific scholar, a passionate teacher, and a man who has devoted much of his life to the service of others. Yahya Kamalipour is a singularly kind and generous man who has enriched the lives of all his friends, colleagues, and students.”
–Dr. Richard Rupp

“Dr. Kamalipour is a scholar with outstanding character; he has been a defender of the rights of the oppressed religious minorities- such as mine. The allegations against Dr. Kamalipour are vile, most reprehensible and constitute defamation of his stellar character. My expectation of a prestigious academic institution such as Purdue University is that it will take action in defense of its outstanding academic faculty member.”
–Jena Khadem Khodadad, Ph.D.

“Yahya is one of the most honorable and professional individuals who I have the pleasure to call my friend. An attack on his reputation and integrity is completely baseless and uncalled for. It is a shame that a person who teaches understanding and appreciating freedom of speech would have to defend himself from ignorance and hate. Yahya is a true American who represents the honor and values that this great country of ours stands for!!!”
–Jorge Lara

“I know professor Kamalipour for over 35 years. his integrity, honesty, cooperation, quality of his knowledge and international work toward Universal Peace is admirable. I am proud to be associated with him.”
–Hormoz Hormozi

“I have known Professor Kamalipour as an internationally renowned scholar and academic ambassador for peace and intercultural understanding. I deeply deplore any suspicions and accusations against this noble and sincere scholar.”
–Mahmoud Sadri Professor of Sociology Texas Woman’s University

“I have known Dr. Yahya Kamalipour for more than 10 years and he has always been an advocate for understanding all viewpoints, expressing tolerance while increasing understanding among various constituencies. He was my professor and department head when earning my Master’s degree at Purdue University, my mentor for classes I taught at Purdue and, most recently, a facilitator for an international panel on global communications on which I was a guest member. Having seen him interact in many environments throughout the years, I can attest to his passion for knowledge sharing, impeccable integrity and endless energy to make communities locally and globally a far better, safer, more educated and peaceful world. Professionally and personally, he teaches tolerance and understanding. As a mentor, he taught me and other students to develop better understandings of cultures and subcultures – whether different ethnicities, politics, languages, religions, economic status, sexual orientation or education – in order to achieve more cohesive, successful communication. I’m completely appalled at the defamatory rhetoric directed toward him! I expect Purdue University to take action against this slander because most importantly it defames Dr. Kamalipour unjustly but also because it puts all employees, students and graduates at risk. This type of cyber bullying needs to stop. Stay strong, Dr. Kamalipour!”
–Meena Ahmadzai

“I am someone who has known Professor Kamalipour for decades. I am honored to call him friend. I wholeheartedly endorse the above true and very appropriately worded statements. I intend to keep Professor Kamalipour, his wife and family as friends the rest of my life and hope to introduce more of my world to him and his writings. I stand by my dear fellow American friends, the Kamilipours, during this attack on his character and am confident that the truth about his character, his peace positions and wisdom will shine forth.”
–Alice M. Clark

“I am presently Cardin Chair for the Humanities at Loyola University Maryland and have had the distinct honor of collaborating with my colleague, Dr. Yahya Kamalipour, on numerous occasions. I have always found Dr. Kamalipour to be an open, supportive colleague who espouses the deepest values of the American Republic. Any suggestion to the contrary is either venal or just misinformed. I consider Dr. Kamalipour’s contributions to the academy in general to be insightful and invaluable. I look forward to his continuing work in our field of international communication for many years to come.”
–Allen W. Palmer, Ph.D.

“I am appalled that a respected academic and scholar like Prof Kamalipour should be subjected to this disgraceful treatment by certain quarters. Action must be taken to redeem this situation before the University is embarrassed further.”
–Dr. Bahma Sivasubramaniam

“I have known Professor Kamalipour for many years and worked with him on many projects. He’s a genuine humanitarian, a first-rate scholar, and a master in the field of communication. The attacks on him — astonishingly enough from a colleague — are ignorant, mean-spirited, and unworthy of a fine academic community.”
–Jim Kenney

“Professor Kamalipour is well known in Egypt and Arab Countries’ media and communication scholars as a professor whose works, publications help create understanding among cultures and religions. I myself invited him to establish a new college at Future University, Egypt where he has done a great job. He is considered to be a freedom fighter and a man of principles. I really was shocked when I heard that somebody is trying to underestimate his reputation.”
–Prof. Dr. Basyouni Hamada

“Dr. Kamalipour is one of the finest professors and strongest academic leaders at Purdue University Calumet. I have had the pleasure of knowing Dr. Kamalipour for many years. I have the deepest respect for him as a professional and a kind human being.”
–Janice Reynolds

“I have known Dr. Kamalipour for many years. In college he was a tremendous, instructor, advisor, mentor and friend. From what I know of him he is a well respected educator and author worldwide.”
–Cindy Hall

“Dr. Yahya Kamalipour advocates cross cultural respect and understanding and this academic finds fault with it. At this rate his next diatribe should be against Jesus Christ who asked us to love one another. What! Love Muslims and gays!”
–Joseph Kayany

“I had the honor to have Dr. Kamalipour as my teacher during my Master’s degree program at Purdue University and he has been an example of integrity and knowledge. I admire his work and his persona.”
–Darcyana Moreno

“University Registrar – Valparaiso University I have had the privilege of being a student of Professor Kamalipour and of knowing him for many years now. There is nothing about him that even remotely resembles the ridiculous accusations he has suffered. As one personal example, we worked together when I returned to Purdue Calumet as an administrator 7 years after graduation and 10 years after that when it was time to move my career forward, he was a key professional reference for an American, Catholic female who was in the process of interviewing and securing a position at an International, Lutheran University. This hateful act is ridiculous when held up to the reality of this man’s life work. May you find respite from this horrible experience, Yahya.”
–Shelly Kooi

“I proudly and fully support Professor Kamalipour in all of his endeavors. His standing in our academic and global communities are unparalleled and his integrity unquestionable.”
– Sincerely, Mitchell Batson (Purdue Graduate-M.A. Communications and former student.)

“I have known Professor Kamalipour for only a short time. But I feel that I have known him always. I have experienced his authentic kindness; his ability to put one at ease; and the positive energy with which he engages others in meaningful dialogue. He recognizes that he does not need to convince anyone to accept his position or beliefs on various matters. He recognizes the right of any individual to draw their own conclusions about life, and to pursue it in a manner that honors that person’s individuality and simultaneously honors the rights of others. This is, apparently, not the posture of anyone who would attempt to defame him. As an African Native American, I continue to be stunned by the arrogance of those who would dare to impose upon others unkind and unhealthy perceptions of a person who has done no harm to anyone. I would think that the continued hire of this type of person would be counter to what any reputable institution would support. I believe that the intentions, actions and words of Professor Kamalipour have communicated for far too long the nature of the kind of man that he happens to be for a publicized defamation of his character to be allowed by an institution that considers itself worthy of respect.”
–Edith Armstrong

“Dr. Kamalipour served on my graduate committee. It saddens me to reply to such absurd allegations. Dr. Kamalipour consistently shows the utmost respect for all perspectives.”
–Jim Noland

“I have known professor kamalipour for many years and consider him to be a highly professional and peaceful individual who has made numerous contributions to advancing global communication and understanding.”
–Dr. Homayoon Shidnia

“Anyone who knows Yahya–or who has followed his writings over the years could not seriously think he was anti-American or pro-Muslim in his published work or his personal speech. When will this society learn that Muslims are not our enemies?”
– Christine Ogan

“Professor Yahya Kamilpour’s Iranian initiatives are praiseworthy. As the Bible says “Blessed are the peace-makers”. By talking to Iranians he is doing no more than what the US Administration is currently doing.”
–Professor Naren Chitty A.M.

“As a former student and current colleague of Dr. Kamalipour’s, any attacks made against the character of this great proponent of peace and gifted scholar would be laughable if they weren’t so incredibly offensive to anyone who has had contact with him. Hopefully this lunacy shows itself the door quickly.”
–Donald Gadberry

“As a Coptic Christian I have worked with Dr.Kamalipour and his character, integrity, and actions always reflected a point of love and understanding in wisdom and understanding.”
–Peter Sedrak

“I have known and worked with Yahya for almost 20 years and have no doubt of his outstanding contributions to peace building and media studies in particular. I first met Yahya in the late 1990s thru the renowned late media scholar, George Gerbner, with whom I helped found the Cultural Environment Movement in 1996. “
–Dr. Rose A. Dyson

“I have known Dr. Kamalipour for more than two decades, first as a professor and author at the great university of Purdue and then as as a member of the DANESH Institute Board of Directors. He has increasingly impressed me by his knowledge, cooperation, and productivity. Above all, his consistent integrity in these roles has been unquestionable. For me, it has been a privilege to work with him as a colleague and then as a friend.”
–Cyrus S. Behroozi

“Dr. Kamalipour is one of the most dedicated educators I have met. During my time at Purdue University Calumet, he always made sacrifices for students in the Communication and Creative Arts Department, regardless of any race, age, gender, etc. Any negative comments made about Dr. Kamalipour are completely false, as proven by the 900 plus signatures above me.”
–Joe Wielosinski

“As a Christian, my family and I have known Dr. Kamalipour and his family since 1990 and for about 10 years we were neighbors. During that time, we visited each other’s homes, our children grew up together, and we have remained in contact. The diatribe posted by a Purdue Calumet faculty, Maurice Eisenstein, is not only outrageous and unprofessional but totally false. He should be ashamed of himself for attacking our peaceful friend.”
–Deanna Geertsema

“Yahya is an outstanding faculty member who is open-minded and respect all people regardless of their background. The accusations are baseless.”
–Daniel Dunn

“The bigoted effort to smear professor Kamalipour should not be tolerated and the university must take responsible action against anyone peddling hate and racism.”
– Shawn Amoei

“I fully endorse this petition. Dr. Kamalipour is a highly respected scholar, an advocate for peace and democracy and a person of the highest integrity. It has been a pleasure knowing him.”
–Dr. Ahmad Mojiri

“I read the blog article and it is completely ridiculous. His facts are based off nothing. The one quote he does use is completely taken out of context, stretched, and twisted to attempt to fit the article’s accusations.”
–Mike Pearson

“Attacking someone based on his or her birth place or religion does not constitute academic speech. Maurice Eisenstein’s opinion fails the basic test of facts and logic.”
–Dr. Jin Lu

“I have known Yahya for three decades, as a professor of mine and as an employer of mine. Never, once, has Yahya practiced hateful behavior, unlike the blogger who takes cheap shots at professional reputations, all while hiding behind a keyboard on the internet. Dr. Kamalipour has only the best interests of humanity in mind. He has actively worked for decades to improve international conditions through better communication. He is a hero, in my book. As for the false allegations by the blogger, I would not consider them to be worth their weight in table salt.”
–Steven M. Haas

“I support the petition wholeheartedly. I do know Professor Kamalipour as a global advocate of peace, respect, peoples’ understanding who devotedly undertakes numerous steps for the common good. His world-wide accomplishments are recognized on the global level. Professor Kamalipour is worth to be treated with respect and honor.”
–Nadejda Greidina

“My family and I are personal friends of Professor Y. Kamalipour, whom we have had the honor of knowing for over 25 years. We are appalled that an institution of such academic renown as Perdue University would allow such a discriminatory and defamatory incident to occur and propagate with impunity. We attest to the academic, civil and moral integrity of Professor Y. Kamalipour and stand with many others to demand with one voice that justice be done by stopping those disaffected academics in their hateful campaign so that his impeccable personal and professional reputation be repaired.”
–Irma Bobroff

“As an Iranian Jew, my family and I have known Dr Kamalipour and his family for many years. I would like to take this opportunity to summarily dismiss Mr Maurice Eisenstein’s outrageous attack on the fine reputation and international standing of Dr Kamalipour. A simple Google search of Eisenstein attests to his unprofessional and discriminatory pattern of behavior and hateful comments. He is a disgrace to the fair-minded Jewish community, and Purdue University.”
– Azita ouryel